Stupid Owl!
by Kasoula
Summary: Nobody can resist the Slytherin Sex God, not even Ginny Weasley. But one thing when it comes to Sex Gods, feelings aren't supposed to be involved---EVER! So what happens when true feelings decide to make an appearance?
1. Slytherin Sex God

Every girl at Hogwarts lusted after the same boy at one point or another…Draco Malfoy. He was just plain hot, no way around it. So, it shouldn't have surprised Ginny one day when she found her attention slipping during History of Magic and ending up in erotic fantasies about the said Slytherin sex god. She figured that the obvious enmity between the Weasleys and the Malfoys should have won over this little bit of lust, but apparently not. Much as she hated to admit it, she wanted Draco to shag her senseless (though she would never voice this desire out loud).

Ginny was abruptly pulled out of her fantasies when the bell rang. She trudged slowly on to her next class, keeping her eyes low to the ground. Suddenly, she was knocked slightly backwards. When she looked up, she found that she had bumped into none other than Draco. For some reason, she blushed, as though he could somehow read her mind and see her dirty little fantasies about him.

"Watch where you're going, Little Weasel!" he snapped, dusting the front of his robes off as though they had been dirtied.

"Sorry," Ginny mumbled, averting her eyes and continuing on.

"Hey, what was that all about?" Colin Creevey came up from behind and fell into step beside her.

"I bumped into Malfoy is all," Ginny replied, rolling her eyes and shoving her fantasies to the back of her mind. _Yeah right! Like that's ever going to happen,_ she thought. _The day Snape starts handing out sweets and singing show tunes will be the day Malfoy and I shag._

"Looks like you've offended him or something," Colin remarked as they sat down in the Great Hall.

"Huh?" Ginny asked.

"Look," he replied, jerking his head in the direction of the Slytherin table. Malfoy was staring at Ginny as though seeing her for the first time. She gave him an odd look and he quickly looked away and began talking to Crabbe and Goyle with his usual supercilious air.

"Okay, that was very odd…" Ginny remarked as she began serving herself.

By the end of lunch, all thoughts of Malfoy had floated out the window, only to return that night while Ginny was in the library. She had been leafing through a large textbook, trying to find out about the effects of asafetida when she felt someone's gaze on the back of her head. She turned around to find Malfoy staring at her yet again. She was starting to wonder if maybe that slight jolt she had given him earlier hadn't somehow knocked some cogs loose in his head. It wasn't normal for Draco to stare at her this much, at least not without a look of utter loathing on his face. She didn't mind too much, because who wouldn't want the sexiest guy in school to stare at them, but it was sort of creeping her out.

She turned back around and returned to her textbook. However, she found that she couldn't concentrate. She kept sensing Draco's gaze on the back of her head and it was driving her mad. She finally dumped her books back into her bag and left. _Great, now I can't even concentrate because Malfoy's decided to make me the object of his ogling!_

As she trudged up to the common room, she still couldn't shake the feeling of eyes on her back. She refused to look behind her in case she found Malfoy following her, for if that happened, she'd be way past creeped out.

* * *

Draco couldn't figure out what had gotten into him. He'd been staring at the Little Weasel pretty much non-stop all day. It had started when she bumped into him. He had gotten his first good look at her in a while right then, and it seemed that there was something different about her. The last time he had really looked at her, and even then it hadn't been with much attention to detail, she had been a little eleven-year-old. But now…she was different, somehow.

As he had sat down for lunch in the Great Hall, he watched her, trying to figure out what was different. She was still on the short side, and her hair was as red as ever, but it was extremely shiny and fell in graceful waves to about her waist. She still had that dusting of freckles across her nose and cheeks, and Draco _hated_ freckles. But she did have some great hips, not to mention the most seductive lips he had ever seen. Out of nowhere, he had a fleeting image of himself and Ginny snogging, and Draco unbuttoning her shirt, then unzipping her skirt, then unhooking her bra…

_Woah, back up! I did _not_ just imagine myself shagging the Weaselette! She's a Muggle-loving disgrace to wizard kind! And I am a Malfoy!_

And then Ginny turned around and saw Draco staring transfixed at her, so he quickly turned around and started telling Crabbe and Goyle a hilarious story about the jumped-up Mudblood.

Later on that evening, Draco found himself staring at Ginny _again_. He hated to admit it, but she was pretty hot. But he couldn't have her. Well, technically, if he really wanted to, he could get her without any effort. He had girls swooning the second he looked at them, that wasn't the problem. No, she belonged to a family barely better than Mudbloods. He would disgrace himself by associating with her.

However, as he continued to watch her, he found that he was really starting to want her. In fact, he had a plan on how to go about getting her already. All he would have to do would be to win her over, get her in bed one night, and then he'd be done. No need for his father to hear about that. It'd be all over in a week, two weeks at most. He'd have what he wanted and he'd avoid any punishment from his father. It was perfect!

He would start wooing the Little Weasel tomorrow. It wouldn't be too hard. He was, after all, the Slytherin Sex God.


	2. Hallway Meetings

Ginny had trouble sleeping that night. She kept remembering how creepy it was that Malfoy kept staring at her. She woke up that morning feeling like a total zombie. She glanced at herself in the mirror and found that she was extra pale due to lack of sleep. She sighed, then tapped her hair with her wand because she was too lazy to brush it this morning. _Thank God it's Saturday!_ she thought. She had the entire weekend ahead of her to recuperate and contemplate why on Earth Malfoy would keep staring at her without interruption. She got dressed, then walked down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

"Gee, someone didn't get enough sleep last night," Colin remarked as Ginny took a seat next to him. She smiled weakly, then reached for some toast.

She and Colin talked for a while, then Ginny bade him goodbye and left the Great Hall. On her way out, somebody headed her off. She glanced up and found herself staring into Malfoy's gray eyes.

"Hello, Little Weasel," he said, smirking. "Where you headed?"

"None of your business," Ginny replied, trying to sidestep him. He mirrored her movement and continued to block her only escape route.

"Now, now, no need to get testy!" he said facetiously. "I was just curious. So, you have yet to answer my question. Where are you headed?"

"Why do you care, Ferret Boy?" she shot back, locking her gaze with his.

"Well, it looks like the Weaselette has a temper as red as her hair," Draco said playfully, reaching over and toying with a lock of the said flaming hair. Ginny slapped his hand.

"Don't touch me!" she spat, trying and failing to sidestep him again.

"What, you mean don't do this?" Draco ran a finger along Ginny's cheek. Ginny felt a chill run up her spine.

"Malfoy, what the hell are you doing to my sister?"

Ron had just strolled out of the Great Hall, hand in hand with Hermione, and Harry close behind, when he had caught sight of Malfoy.

"Talking, Weasley. That against the rules?" Malfoy replied coolly.

"Why were you talking to my sister?" Ron yelled, his ears turning the telltale red.

In the commotion that ensued, Ginny managed to slip away unnoticed. She ran out the front door, then once she was safely outside she meandered down to sit beneath a weeping willow beside the lake. There was a slight crispness to the air, as autumn was just starting to really roll in. Ginny watched as the giant squid collected the bread that some first years were throwing into the lake. She sighed and leaned back against the tree. Why was Malfoy suddenly starting to show an interest in her? He had probably lost a bet. He was after all a Malfoy, and Malfoys wouldn't be caught dead hanging around "riffraff" like the Weasleys. He would never start trying to talk to her of his own free will, would he?

* * *

Malfoy listened lazily as Ron screamed at him, while Harry scowled and Hermione suppressed laughter. He had forgotten that in order to get to Ginny, he would have to avoid confrontation with her brother. Draco had gathered that Ron was extremely overprotective of his little sister simply from listening to his five-minute rant. At the end of the whole spiel, Draco had simply scowled and walked off, heading out the doors to the grounds.

_Hmm…that was odd,_ Draco thought as he descended the stone steps. _The Weaselette seemed to be immune to my charm. Why is she resisting me?_ Draco figured that the key to success would be persistence, so when he spotted her by the lake, he nonchalantly headed that way. She had been staring off into space, but when Draco plopped himself down beside her, she pulled out of her reverie.

"What are you doing?" Ginny asked sharply.

"Sitting under a tree by the lake that you also happen to be sitting under," Draco replied lightly. "Why?"

"Yes, that's a good question," she replied. "Why are you suddenly talking to me?"

"Well, you may just never know the answer to that, Weaselette." Draco leaned back lazily against the tree and crossed his arms.

"In that case, I suggest you leave me alone, 'cause I'm not interested in you." Ginny glared at him. "You're a stuck-up slime-ball and you think that the world revolves around you. And, you think that you can just smileno smirk, you don't smilein my direction and I'll immediately jump in bed with you."

"Ouch, Weaselette, you wound me!" Draco put his hand dramatically against his heart as though he had been hit with an arrow.

"It's true and you know it is!"

"Yes, I am an evil slimy git and proud of it!" he replied smugly. "Just give me a chance, that's all I ask of you. I swear I won't disappoint you." He gave her a suggestive look. _That's right, Draco, work the sexy charm._

"Give me one good reason, Malfoy." Ginny crossed her arms and looked at him expectantly.

"Because you think I'm hot and you know I could give you the time of your life."

"You disgust me!" she spat before getting up and starting to walk away.

"Ginny, dearest," Draco said mockingly, getting up and following her, "you did _not_ just walk away form a Malfoy!"

"It appears that I did," Ginny shot back, her voice laced with venom. _Damn, this girl isn't as easy as I thought!_

"Ginny, one chance is all I ask. See? I even stopped calling you anything remotely to do with weasels. One chance, Ginny, you know you want to…"

"God damn it Malfoy!" She whirled around in rage. "You just don't get it, do you? You're evil scum! Up until now, you wouldn't so much as give me the time of day. I don't trust you, I don't!"

Draco finally caught up with her. Before she could do anything, he had her in his arms, his mouth mere millimeters from her ear.

"Don't trust me, or don't trust yourself?" he whispered, feeling a shiver run up her spine. _So the Little Weasel isn't immune to me after all…_

Ginny struggled to get away from him, but he was holding on to her tightly.

"Draco! No! Let me go! Draco! Let me…" The end of her sentence trailed off into a sort of satisfied sigh as Draco proceeded to leave a trail of kisses along her neck. She stopped struggling momentarily and Draco loosened his grip. Quick as lightning, Ginny broke away from him and took off running towards the castle.

_Damn! I almost had her!_ Draco cursed silently. Maybe he had overestimated his charm._ No, I'm definitely all that, _he reasoned as the group of girls he passed all giggled and waggled their fingers at him. It was definitely the Little Weasel. He could sense that she wanted him, but she was afraidand with good reason. He just had to somehow lure her into a false sense of security.


	3. The Astronomy Tower

Once Ginny was safely inside the castle, she ran as fast as she could until she found an empty classroom. She slammed the door behind her, then leaned her back against it, slowly sliding down to the floor. She was panting heavily and Draco's whisper still lingered in her ear. The way he had held her…it had given her goosebumps. She rubbed her temples, trying to straighten out her thoughts, which were giving her a migraine. And then he had kissed her, gently leaving a trail from her ear to her collarbone. She shivered, remembering the sensation. She had almost been ready to give in to him too, almost. Then she came back to Earth and remembered this was _Malfoy_. But if he kept on chasing her, she wasn't sure if she would be able to continue to resist him.

After she had calmed down a little, Ginny found her way to the Astronomy Tower. The wind was harsher up there, and the cold would perhaps keep her tied down to Earth. In any case, it would be refreshing, she figured as she climbed slowly up the winding staircase. Just as she had hoped, when she got up there she was alone. She leaned on the railing, letting the cold wind whip her flaming hair around. It made her cheeks sting, but it woke her up a little bit. She breathed in deeply, savoring the temporary return to sanity.

Why was Malfoy so interested in her? And why did he have to be so seductive, and so damn _hot_? Ginny rubbed her eyes, then ran her hand along where Draco had left sweet kisses, merely ten minutes ago, that had driven her crazy. She shook her head, to clear her mind of all the sudden fantasies rushing through it. It was probably some sudden phase he was going through. From what Ginny had heard, Draco was very much the wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am type. He wasn't one to hang onto a girl very long. Once he got her in bed, he would be done with her. _It's just sudden lust Ginny,_ she told herself. _It's nothing serious. It won't last long. Just wait, it'll pass, he'll give up, and you can move on with your life. He just wants another one-night stand._ She kept repeating this to herself, until she almost had herself convinced.

Ginny stayed there until her nose stung so much she was sure it would fall off. She tugged her robes around herself a little tighter before starting back down the stairs. It was nearly lunchtime and she was starving. She let her fingers trail loosely along the banister as she stared up at the ceiling, admiring the beautiful gilded stars that were painted there. At the bottom, she overstepped and stumbled forward, to fall into none other than Draco. _Oh great, I'm falling into him _everywhere_ I go now! It's like the Fates are out to get me or something._

"My, my, Weaselette, you just can't get enough of me, can you?" Draco said, smirking. He had caught her swiftly, her upper arms in his grip. He let one of his hands trail up to the back of her neck, running his fingers lightly up and down. Ginny felt another shiver run up her spine and she tried to pull away, but Draco held her fast.

"Draco, stop!" she said, trying to push his hand away. He gently tickled the back of her neck, causing her to squirm and try to suppress laughter. Ginny was _extremely_ ticklish.

"So, you given my offer any more thought?" he asked quietly.

"What offer?" Ginny asked abruptly, coming back down to Earth.

"Will you give me a chance or not?" He looked directly in her eyes, his silver gaze, usually so cold, sparkling. _That's odd,_ Ginny thought. _I never thought Draco's eyes could sparkle… _

"I don't know, Draco, I don't trust you…" She trailed off as Draco's hand moved from the back of her hand to her face to brush away stray hair. His eyes were still locked with hers, and Ginny was starting to feel an odd sensation in the pit of her stomach. She had another sudden crazy fantasy about the two of them, and she tried to shove it to the back of her mind again. _Malfoy is nothing but trouble, Ginny, you know that, you know that, YOU KNOW THAT_…

Draco came closer, and Ginny felt herself rooted to the spot, immobilized by his gaze. In a moment that seemed to contain eternity, his lips approached hers, until they finally met. Ginny's first instinct was to pull back, but this kiss was so passionate, so delicious, that she sighed inwardly and seemed to melt into him. She ran her arms up his chest and laid them at the back of his neck, pulling him closer. Then, she seemed to realize what she was doing, and in horror she finally did pull back. She hesitated a second, then ran as fast as she could, shoving past him and dashing into the corridor beyond.

_Oh my God! I just kissed Malfoy! Draco Malfoy, I kissed him, I _kissed_ him!_ Ginny began mentally freaking out, still running madly down the corridor. She had forgotten her hunger. Instead, she ran straight to the girls' dormitory in Gryffindor Tower, where she would be safe from him, at least in physical form.

* * *

Draco spun around and watched as Ginny ran away, slightly taken aback for a moment. Her had felt something when he had kissed her. He wasn't supposed to feel anything. Sure, he was supposed to get pleasure out of it, but there wasn't supposed to be any actual chemistry. Sparks weren't supposed to fly, his senses weren't supposed to go wild. He wasn't supposed to have _feelings_ for her.

_No way, no, I do _not_ have feelings for the Little Weasel!_ He started walking determinedly forward, heading for the Great Hall for lunch. _It must have been static electricity or…something! I can_not_ have feelings for her. I do _not_ have feelings for Ginny Weasley! _

"I _don't_ like her!"

Everyone within a five-yard radius turned and stared as Draco made this proclamation. _Shit! I said that out loud!_ He quickly shot everyone a haughty look before holding himself up straighter and strutting the remaining distance to the Slytherin table. With the ease that came from years of practice, he shoved his thoughts to the back of his mind and immersed himself in a loud and obnoxious conversation trashing Harry's Quidditch skills. However, no matter how hard he tried to occupy his mind with other things, he still couldn't shake the feeling he had gotten the second his and Ginny's lips had made contact.

After lunch, Draco strolled down to the lake to think. He looked at his immaculate reflection in the murky lake water without really seeing it. Why had he felt something? He had spent his life carefully building up shield after shield, to guard himself from feeling. He had learned early on that feeling was dangerous. Feeling meant making yourself susceptible to human error. Feeling was a weakness in which you cried whenever you were beaten and insults stung. No, he had learned not to feel and had created a dragon-thick hide for himself. But, it seemed that somehow Ginny had pierced through that skin as thought it were as thin as that of an apple. She had made him _feel_.

_No, you weren't feeling anything! You don't feel, you don't fall in love!_ At this thought he shook his head, as though trying to shake out all thoughts of this nature. Draco Malfoy didn't, under any circumstances, fall in love. His future was all mapped out, his destiny already decided. Falling in love would mess all that up, not that it would happen. It _couldn't_ happen. Draco kept repeating this to himself, hoping that he could convince himself. But then that feeling returned, the feeling he had felt in the pit of his stomach, the way his mind had gone all fuzzy, and for a single moment in his life, he had felt bliss.

Draco left the lakeside and flopped down beneath a tree, leaning back and closing his eyes. Damn her, damn her, _damn her_! This had to be her fault somehow. She had cast a spell, drugged him, _something_, anything, but he could _not_ be feeling this way naturally. _You're in denial…_the annoying voice in the back of his head nagged. Draco scowled. _I am _not_ in denial!_ Wonderful, he was having an argument with his own self. _Yes, you are. You just denied it, therefore you are in denial._ That stupid little voice of his was way too smug for its own good. Then, Draco rubbed his head tiredly, not believing that he was being bested by an annoying voice in the back of his mind. _Damn you, Weasley!_


	4. Seeking Sanctuary

An hour later, Ginny's heart had stopped pounding so hard and her breathing had returned to normal. She then felt comfortable enough to try to sort out her thoughts. Had she seriously felt _attraction_ when she and Malfoy had kissed? She couldn't have. He was a Malfoy, a dirty, slimy, sleazy _Malfoy._ She couldn't actually like him. But her knees had felt weak, and she had felt so lightheaded. He had swept her away. And she had felt something else too, something that she had never felt when she had snogged Michael Corner. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she had definitely felt _something_.

Ginny sighed and grabbed her books, deciding to head down to the Common Room to do some homework. _So much for having a relaxing Saturday._ Her stomach growled and she uncomfortably realized that she had missed lunch. _Damn you, Malfoy!_

Upon arriving in the Common Room, Ginny was ambushed by her older brother.

"Ginevra Molly Weasley!" Ron yelled. Ginny cringed at the mention of her full name.

"Yes, Ronald dearest?" she said sardonically.

"What were you and Malfoy doing earlier today?"

"Ron, I"

"And why weren't you at lunch?"

"Ron, you don't"

"You were with Malfoy, weren't you?"

"No, Ron, I"

"Ginny, what's going on with you and Malfoy? He's pure evil, Gin, you can't honestly _like_ him!"

"_RON!_" Ginny exclaimed, exasperated.

"What?" Ron replied, lowering his voice ever so slightly.

"There is nothing going on between Malfoy and me. _Nothing_. So, if you don't mind, I have homework I need to do."

"But…but…Ginny!"

"Ron, I'm a big girl now. I can take care of myself. Fizz off!" And with that, she swept past him and out of the Common Room, heading for the library. _Honestly, the nerve of him! Just because he's my big brother does _not _mean that he needs to know every little detail of my personal life. And anyway, it's not like I lied to him. I _don't _like Malfoy…do I?_

Ginny shook herself mentally. Of course she didn't like him. She had hated him since before she'd met him. His father was a Death Eater, for God's sake, and Draco was soon to become one too. _But you felt that attraction…_the little voice in the back of her head chimed in. _No, it wasn't attraction. It was…something else._ Wonderful, she was trying to reason with her mind. _Denial…_

As she entered the library, Ginny decided that voices in the back of one's mind were evil!

She sat down at a table towards the back of the library, seeking refuge behind the endless shelves. She pulled out a sheaf of parchment and started to think about what to write for her Transfiguration essay. She sat there staring at the parchment for ten minutes, thinking so hard that she forgot what she was writing about in the first place. She held her head in her hands and sighed.

"Oh man," she started mumbling to herself. "It's all his fault. I can't think straight anymore. I don't like him! I don't like him! I do _not_ like Malfoy! I don't like him, I don't like him, I don't"

"Perhaps you should go somewhere more secluded if you're going to mumble things like that to yourself."

Ginny looked up and saw Draco smirking down at her. _Damn it!_

"Draco, what're you doing here? You have to…What are you doing here? I need to…What are you _doing_ here?"

"You're repeating yourself," Draco remarked, cocking an eyebrow.

"What? No! I'm not repeating myself! I'm not repeating myself! I'm not re—oh God, I'm repeating myself!" Ginny returned her head to her hands, rubbing her temples. "You know what, this is all your fault! I blame you entirely! I'm not supposed to like you!"

The second Ginny realized what she had just said, she clapped her hand to her mouth and looked up to see Draco's bemused face.

"You weren't supposed to hear that," she said in a slightly muffled voice.

Draco was looking at her thoughtfully while Ginny's mind raced. How could she have said that out loud? Draco would tell everyone! Or worse, he would taunt her endlessly. Why had she allowed herself to fantasize about him in History of Magic? Why? None of this would have ever happened if she hadn't been fantasizing about him.

* * *

Draco contemplated Ginny, who seemed to be deep in thought. She had said that she wasn't supposed to like him. _That makes two of us,_ he thought, resigned. There weren't supposed to be any feelings involved. It was supposed to be pure lust. Real feelings weren't supposed to have anything to do with this. And yet, somewhere between all that physical attraction, love had crept in through Draco's shields. He didn't know how that could have possibly happen. Draco Malfoy would _not_ suddenly go all soft for this girl. He wouldn't!

But it was too late. He had already fallen for her.

Draco slowly pulled up a chair beside Ginny. She looked at him in shock, lowering her hand from her mouth. He gripped her chin firmly and turned her head until her chocolate-brown eyes met his gray ones. Clearly, she was confused, but so was Draco. Something about her had destroyed all his protections against feeling. Something…

Draco leaned forward and lightly touched his lips against hers. After a moment, he pulled back a little.

"I wasn't supposed to like you either," he breathed. She looked at him in complete disbelief. Draco brushed a piece of her hair back behind her ear.

"Ginny!"

A booming yell cut through the silence. Ginny jumped up in shock and looked around frantically.

"No! Ron has the _worst_ timing in the world!" she mumbled, hurriedly shoving her books in her bag and knocking the table as she got up. She rushed towards the source of the voice, then turned back a moment to look at Draco.

"_Ginny!_"

She whipped around and flat out ran to her brother. Draco watched her go, in a slight daze. Had he really just said what he thought he had? What was wrong with him? And had Ginny just seriously walked away from him? It was usually he who walked away from the girl, not vice-versa. He rubbed his eyes tiredly. Why did he have to get involved with her? Why? She had just made his life that much more complicated. He could have had any girl in the entire school, and he just _had_ to go after Ginny Weasley. He had to go after the one girl he would actually fall for. Boy, the Fates must _really_ hate him!


	5. Snogging in the Rain

"There you are!" Ron said as Ginny appeared in front of him, slightly red-faced. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"What do you want?" Ginny asked gruffly, having lost all patience with her brother. _He probably just wants to rant some more about how I should stay away from Malfoy._

"I just wanted to apologize for earlier." Ron looked down at her seriously. "I was a prat and you're right, you're not a little girl anymore and what you do is none of my business."

"Did Hermione tell you to say that?" Ginny asked, the corners of her mouth twitching into a smile.

"No!" Ron said quickly, looking around shiftily. "Okay, yes, she did. But it's true and she made me realize that I was being a bastard. Forgive me?"

"I suppose," Ginny replied. "Boy, you must really love Hermione if she can get you to stop bugging me about my personal life."

"Yeah, well, she's really amazing…" Ron trailed off, gazing dreamily off into space. _Oh brother!_ Ginny moved past her brother and checked her watch. Good Lord! When did it get to be so close to dinner? She sighed, hoisting her bag more firmly onto her shoulder. This Draco business had started messing with her head. Had he really said that he wasn't supposed to like her either? Did that mean what she thought it meant?

_I really need a distraction…_Ginny thought, searching her mind for a possibility. She spotted Colin down the corridor.

"Colin!" she called. "Wait up!" He looked up and, upon seeing who it was, smiled.

"Ginny," he said as she reached him. "Where've you been all day? You look kind of…distracted."

Ginny flapped her hand, motioning to Colin to forget about it.

"Never mind that. What have you been up to?"

Colin shrugged and the two of them began walking up the stairs to go to the Gryffindor Common Room so Ginny could drop off her books before dinner.

Ginny occupied herself with their conversation, trying to keep all thoughts of Draco away. It worked for the most part, but whenever there was a lull in the conversation the thoughts came rushing back. She felt like roaring in frustration, but resisted the urge because it would raise odd looks and questions from Colin and the people in the surrounding area. Draco was constantly there in her mind, the look he had given her in the library so clear. For once, his eyes weren't cold and icy, but they had been soft and full of something Ginny had never seen in them. Maybe he really _did_ like her. Maybe…

As they entered the Great Hall, which was abuzz with conversation, Ginny glanced around and spotted Draco's white-blonde head. After a few seconds she realized that she had been drifting in that direction. She hastily caught up with Colin and sat down beside him, making sure her back was to Draco. She continued trying to talk normally to Colin while keeping her thoughts in check. She couldn't let her mind linger for too long on that look Draco had given her. She felt the desire to be with him whenever she thought about it.

After dinner, Ginny tried to keep up normal behavior and walked with Colin back up to Gryffindor Tower, maybe a little more slowly than she would have liked. She really just wanted to get to bed and hopefully wake up and find out that all this was a weird, twisted dream. At least sleep would give her a slight reprieve from the confusion of the day, at least until she hit the REM phase, where she would most likely be haunted by Draco in her dreams.

Ginny's hunch, in fact, was correct. However, instead of hitting dreams in early morning, as one would normally do, she woke up at midnight after a particularly vivid dream where she had relived the day's events, with a few extra twists. She threw her covers off herself, sat up, and swung her feet over the edge of the bed so that they dangled down. She concentrated her breathing, trying to calm herself down. After a moment, she decided she needed air. She ran out of her dormitory as quietly as possible. She crept along the corridors, using the hidden passages Fred and George had taught her in her first year, and didn't realize that she had forgotten her cloak until she got out into the cold night air. She tried to ignore it and strolled down to the lakeside, gazing at her reflection in the steely water as the wind whipped her hair around, breathing deeply and enjoying the temporary escape from craziness.

* * *

Draco tossed restlessly in his bed. For how long had he been trying to fall asleep? He glanced at his watch, which was lying on his bedside table. It read 12:04, which meant roughly three hours. Draco had gone to be early in hopes of driving Ginny out of his mind, but no such luck. Try as he might, he couldn't fall asleep. He swung himself up out of bed, grabbed his cloak, and left the dormitory, deciding that maybe some air would do him good. And, considering it was the dead of night, there was virtually no chance that he would run into Ginny.

Draco moved quickly through the dungeon passages up to the Entrance Hall, then out the door. He closed his eyes as the cold wind hit him hard, letting it wash over him. He opened his eyes and began to follow the path that led down to the lake. When he was about halfway there, it started to rain, lightly at first, but then harder and harder until it was difficult to see very far in any direction.

Draco shook his wet hair out of his eyes and started turning around to go back to the castle when he caught a glimpse of something red-orange. He turned back and realized that it was Ginny, who was running from the lakeside to seek refuge underneath a tree. Before he realized what he was doing, he started running towards her.

"Ginny!"

She whipped around, her soaking hair flying, her pajamas clinging to her.

"D-D-Draco?" she stammered, her teeth chattering. Clearly, she was freezing, as her arms were bare and her pajamas completely soaked through. She was looking up at him, eyes shining in the dim light from the far-off lanterns that framed the school's entrance. Draco put his arms around her and held her tightly, feeling her trembling. _Since when did Draco Malfoy become so soft?_ he asked himself as he found himself absently stroking Ginny's hair. Draco was finally figuring out that you can't fight true feelings, even if they weren't supposed to be there in the first place. He had found the one person in the entire world that he actually cared about, no matter how much he tried to deny it.

He glanced down at her and found that she was looking up at him, the trace of a smile playing across her lips. He leaned down and kissed her, feeling that odd sensation again. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. As the kiss deepened, they became so wrapped up in their little snog-fest that they didn't even notice that the rain was lessening.

Soon, Draco moved on and started gently sucking Ginny's neck, getting a sigh from her in response. His hands traveled further down her back. She had undone the clasps on his cloak and unbuttoned his pajama shirt, her hands now on his chest. They resumed snogging and probably would have continued on this path until daybreak had an owl not hooted at that exact moment and broken them apart. They both looked up, startled.

"Stupid owl!" Draco muttered. Ginny giggled, then looked up at him, smiling. He put his arm around her waist and together, they braved the rain back up to the castle.


End file.
